Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) Information
For information concerning PCT member countries, see the notice
appearing in the Official Gazette at 1350 O.G. 73, on January 12, 2010
For information on subject matter under Rule 39 that a particular
International Searching Authority will not search, see Annex D of the PCT
Applicants' Guide.
European Patent Office as Searching and Examining Authority
The European Patent Office (EPO) may act as the International Searching
Authority (ISA) for an international application filed with the United
States Receiving Office or the International Bureau (IB) as Receiving
Office where at least one of the applicants is either a national or
resident of the United States of America. However, the EPO is no longer
a competent ISA, within the meaning of PCT Article 16(3), for
international applications filed by U.S. residents or nationals on or
after March 1, 2002, in the USPTO or IB as a Receiving Office, and where
the application contains one or more claims directed to the field of
business methods. For the definition of what the EPO considers to be
precluded subject matter in the field of business methods, applicants
should see the "Notice from the President of the European Patent
Office", dated November 26, 2001, and which was published as Annex A in
the "Notice Concerning EPO Competence to Act as PCT Authority" in
the Official Gazette at 1255 O.G. 878, on February 19, 2002.
The European Patent Office may act as the International Preliminary
Examining Authority (IPEA) for an international application filed in the
United States Receiving Office or the International Bureau as Receiving
Office where at least one of the applicants is either a national or
resident of the United States of America, provided that the European
Patent Office acted as the International Searching Authority. However,
the EPO is no longer a competent IPEA, within the meaning of PCT Article
32(3), for international applications filed by U.S. residents or nationals
in the USPTO or IB as a Receiving Office where the corresponding demand is
filed with the EPO on or after March 1, 2002, and where the application
contains one or more claims directed to the field of business methods.
The search fee of the European Patent Office was increased, effective
January 1, 2011, and was announced in the Official Gazette at 1361 O.G.
180, on December 28, 2010.
Korean Intellectual Property Office as Searching and Examining Authority
For use of the Korean Intellectual Property Office as an International
Searching Authority and International Preliminary Examining Authority for
international applications filed in the United States Receiving Office,
see the notice appearing in the Official Gazette at 1302 O.G. 1261 on
January 17, 2006.
The search fee of the Korean Intellectual Property Office was increased,
effective January 1, 2011, and was announced in the Official Gazette at
1361 O.G. 180, on December 28, 2010.
Australian Patent Office as Searching and Examining Authority
The Australian Patent Office (IP Australia) may act as the International
Searching Authority (ISA) for an international application filed with the
United States Receiving Office or the International Bureau (IB) as
Receiving Office where at least one of the applicants is either a national
or resident of the United States of America. However, IP Australia is not a
competent ISA, within the meaning of PCT Artical 16(3), for international
applications filed by U.S. residents or nationals in the USPTO or IB as a
Receiving Office, and where the application contains one or more claims

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1368 OG 3

directed to the field of business methods or mechanical inventions.
IP Australia may act as the International Preliminary Examining
Authority (IPEA) for an international application filed in the United
States Receiving Office or the International Bureau as Receiving Office
where at least one of the applicants is either a national or resident of
the United States of America, provided that IP Australia acted as the
International Searching Authority. However, IP Australia is not a competent
IPEA, within the meaning of PCT Article 32(3), for international
applications filed by U.S. residents or nationals in the USPTO or IB as a
Receiving Office where the corresponding demand is filed with IP Australia
and where the application contains one or more claims directed to the
fields of business methods or mechanical engineering or analogous fields of
technology as defined by specified areas of the International Patent
Classification System, as indicated in Annex A to the agreement between the
USPTO and IP Australia. See the notice appearing in the Official Gazette
at 1337 O.G. 261 on December 23, 2008.
For use of IP Australia as an International Searching Authority and
International Preliminary Examining Authority for international
applications filed in the United States Receiving Office, see the notice
appearing in the Official Gazette at 1337 O.G. 265 on December 23, 2008.
The search fee of IP Australia was increased, effective January 1, 2011,
and was announced in the Official Gazette at 1361 O.G. 180, on December 28,
2010.
Fees
The transmittal fee and search fees for the USPTO were changed,
effective January 12, 2009, and were announced in the Federal Register on
November 12, 2008. The fee for filing a request for the restoration of the
right of priority was established, effective November 9, 2007, and was
announced in the Federal Register on September 10, 2007.
International filing fees were increased, effective November 1, 2010, and
were announced in the Official Gazette at 1360 O.G. 5, on November 2, 2010.
The schedule of PCT fees (in U.S. dollars), as of January 1, 2011, is
as follows:
International Application (PCT Chapter I) fees:
Transmittal fee $240.00
Search fee
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) as
International Searching Authority (ISA)
- Search fee $2,080.00
- Supplemental search fee, per additional
invention (payable only upon invitation) $2,080.00
European Patent Office as ISA $2,443.00
Korean Intellectual Property Office as ISA
- for international applications filed in English $1,157.00
IP Australia as ISA $1,837.00
International fees
International filing fee $1,367.00
International filing fee-filed in paper
with PCT EASY zip file or
electronically without PCT EASY zip file $1,264.00

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1368 OG 4

International filing fee-filed
electronically with PCT EASY zip files $1,161.00
Supplemental fee for each page over 30 $15.00
Restoration of Priority
Filing a request for the restoration of the
right of priority under § 1.452 $1,410.00
International Application (PCT Chapter II) fees associated
with filing a Demand for Preliminary Examination:
Handling fee $206.00
Handling fee-90% reduction, if applicants meet criteria
specified at:
http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/fees/fee_reduction.pdf $20.60
Preliminary Examination Fee
USPTO as International Preliminary
Examining Authority (IPEA)
- USPTO was ISA in PCT Chapter I $600.00
- USPTO was not ISA in PCT Chapter I $750.00
- Additional preliminary examination fee,
per additional invention
(payable only upon invitation) $600.00
U.S. National Stage fees (for international applications entering
the U.S. national phase under 35 U.S.C. 371) can be found on the USPTO's
Web site (www.uspto.gov).
December 13, 2010 ROBERT W. BAHR
Acting Associate Commissioner
for Patent Examination Policy
United States Patent and Trademark Office

Notice of Maintenance Fees Payable
Title 37 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Section 1.362(d) provides
that maintenance fees may be paid without surcharge for the six-month
period beginning 3, 7, and 11 years after the date of issue of patents
based on applications filed on or after Dec. 12, 1980. An additional
six-month grace period is provided by 35 U.S.C. 41(b) and 37 CFR 1.362(e)
for payment of the maintenance fee with the surcharge set forth in 37 CFR
1.20(h), as amended effective Dec. 16, 1991. If the maintenance fee is
not paid in the patent requiring such payment the patent will expire on
the 4th, 8th, or 12th anniversary of the grant.
Attention is drawn to the patents that were issued on June 24, 2008
for which maintenance fees due at 3 years and six months may now be paid
The patents have patent numbers within the following ranges:
Utility Patents 7,389,543 through 7,392,547
Reissue Patents based on the above identified patents.
Attention is drawn to the patents that were issued on June 22, 2004
for which maintenance fees due at 7 years and six months may now be paid
The patents have patent numbers within the following ranges:
Utility Patents 6,751,804 through 6,754,908
Reissue Patents based on the above identified patents.
Attention is drawn to the patents that were issued on June 20, 2000
for which maintenance fees due at 11 years and six months may now be paid.
The patents have patent numbers within the following ranges:
Utility Patents 6,076,185 through 6,079,047
Reissue Patents based on the above identified patents.
No maintenance fees are required for design or plant patents.
Payments of maintenance fees in patents may be submitted electronically
over the Internet at www.uspto.gov. Click on the "Site Index" link at the
top of the homepage (www.uspto.gov), and then scroll down and click on the
"Maintenance Fees" link for more information.
Payments of maintenance fees in patents not submitted electronically
over the Internet should be mailed to "United States Patent and Trademark
Office, P.O. Box 979070, St. Louis, MO 63197-9000".
Correspondence related to maintenance fees other than payments of
maintenance fees in patents is not to be mailed to P.O. Box 979070,
St. Louis, MO 63197-9000, but must be mailed to "Mail Stop M
Correspondence, Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, P.O.
Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450".
Patent owners must establish small entity status according to 37 CFR
1.27 if they have not done so and if they wish to pay the small entity
amount.
The current amounts of the maintenance fees due at 3 years and six
months, 7 years and six months, and 11 years and six months are set forth
in the most recently amended provisions in 37 CFR 1.20(e)-(g). To obtain
the current maintenance fee amounts, please call the USPTO Contact Center
at (800)-786-9199 or see the current USPTO fee schedule posted on the USPTO
Internet web site. At the top of the USPTO homepage at www.uspto.gov, click
on the "Site Index" link and then scroll down and click on the "Fees,
USPTO" link to find the current USPTO fee schedule.

37 CFR 1.47 Notice by Publication
Notice is hereby given of the filing of an application with a petition
under 37 CFR 1.47 requesting acceptance of the application without the
signature of all inventors. The petition has been granted. A notice has
been sent to the last known address of the non-signing inventor. The
inventor whose signature is missing (Andrew Mathie) may join in the
application by promptly filing an appropriate oath or declaration complying
with 37 CFR 1.63. The international application number is PCT/GB2008/000328
and was filed on 31 January 2008 in the name of Nigel Victor SPURR, Robert
TOLLEY, Peter COLEMAN, Dominique ATTANASIO, Shaun GALLOWAY, Andrew MATHIE,
Kishan KUMAR, Denis CAVALLUCCI and Stephane BARBIER for the invention
entitled LATCH ASSEMBLY. The national stage application number is
12/528,171.
37 CFR 1.47 Notice by Publication
Notice is hereby given of the filing of a national stage application
with a petition under 37 CFR 1.47 requesting acceptance of the application
without the signature of all inventors. The petition has been granted. A
notice has been sent to the last known address of the non-signing
inventors. The inventor whose signature is missing (Ewoud Van Ramsdonk) may
join in the application by promptly filing an appropriate oath or
declaration complying with 37 CFR 1.63. The international application
number is PCT/EP08/04391 and was filed on 29 May 2008 in the names of Ewoud
van Ramsdonk and Simone Tertoolen, entitled GENERATING A DISPLAY IMAGE. The
national stage application is assigned number 12/736,403 and has a 35
U.S.C. 371(c) date of 24 March 2011.
37 CFR 1.47 Notice by Publication
Notice is hereby given of the filing of an application with a petition
under 37 CFR 1.47 requesting acceptance of the application without the
signature of a joint inventor. The petition has been granted. A notice has
been sent to the last known address of the non-signing inventor. The
inventor whose signature is missing (Dagmar ZIERER) may join in the
application by promptly filing an appropriate oath or declaration complying
with 37 CFR 1.63. The international application number is PCT/EP2008/055214
and was filed on April 29, 2008 in the names of Sharmilla BAKSHI, Thomas
CIPPS, Markus HANNER, Jutta PIKALO, Christina SATKE, Eszter NAGY, Urban
LUNDBERG, Dagmar ZIERER, Andreas MEINKE, Birgit NOIGES, Ulrike
STIERSCHNEIDER, and Alexander VON GABAIN for the invention entitled
KLEBSIELLA ANTIGENS. The national stage application number is 12/598,176
and has a 35 U.S.C. 371(c)(1), (2) and (4) date of September 23, 2010.
37 CFR 1.47 Notice by Publication
Notice is hereby given of the filing of an application with a petition
under 37 CFR 1.47 requesting acceptance of the application without the
signature of a joint inventor. The petition has been granted. A notice has
been sent to the last known address of the non-signing inventor. The
inventor whose signature is missing (Ozlem KAYA) may join in the
application by promptly filing an appropriate oath or declaration complying
with 37 CFR 1.63. The international application number is PCT/EP2008/060638
and was filed on August 13, 2008 in the names of Zehra ULGER, Erman TUTKAK,
Emine BIRCI, Meryem GUNERI and Ozlem KAYA for the invention entitled A
DISHWASHER. The national stage application number is 12/673,706 and has a
35 U.S.C. 371(c)(1), (2) and (4) date of December 20, 2010.
37 CFR 1.47 Notice by Publication
Notice is hereby given of the filing of an application with a petition
under 37 CFR 1.47 requesting acceptance of the application without the
signature of the inventor. The petition has been granted. A notice has been
sent to the last known address of the non-signing inventor. The inventor

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US PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE

1368 OG 41

whose signature is missing (Surya Tenneti) may join in the application by
promptly filing an appropriate oath or declaration complying with 37 CFR
1.63. The international application number is PCT/US2009/041427 and was
filed on 22 April 2009, in the names of Chandra Bontu, Surya Tenneti,
Devaki Chandramouli and David Anderson for the invention entitled
RESTRICTING HANDOVER OF A MOBILE STATION. The national stage application
number is 12/998,360 and has a 35 U.S.C. §371(c)(1), (c)(2) and (c)(4) date
of 04 January 2011.
37 CFR 1.47 Notice by Publication
Notice is hereby given of the filing of a national stage application
with a petition under 37 CFR 1.47 requesting acceptance of the application
without the signature of all of the inventors. The petition has been
granted. A notice has been sent to the last known addresses of the
non-signing inventors, Milan Krajicek and Vaclav Vomacka. The inventors
whose signature are missing may join in the application by promptly filing
an appropriate oath or declaration complying with 37 CFR 1.63. The
international application number is PCT/IB2006/003117 and was filed on 06
Novmber 2006 in the names of Raymond Andrieu, Philippe Le Goff, Milan
Krajicek and Vaclav Vomacka for the invention entitled Resorbable
Intra-Urethral Prosthesis. The national stage application is assigned
number 12/513,405 and has a 35 U.S.C. 371(c)(1), (c)(2) and (c)(4) date of
28 December 2009.
37 CFR 1.47 Notice by Publication
Notice is hereby given of the filing of a national stage application
with a petition under 37 CFR 1.47 requesting acceptance of the application
without the signature of all inventors. The petition has been granted. A
notice has been sent to the last known address of the non-signing inventor.
The inventor whose signature is missing (Remo TIZIANI) may join in the
application by promptly filing an appropriate oath or declaration complying
with 37 CFR 1.63. The international application number is PCT/EP2009/058643
and was filed on 08 July 2009 in the names of Gianfranco Mantovan and Remo
Tiziani for the invention entitled IMPROVED MACHINE FOR WINDING A WIRE FROM
A ROLLING MILL INTO A COIL. The national stage application number is
13/056,712 and has a 35 U.S.C. 371 date of 24 March 2011.
37 CFR 1.47 Notice of Publication
Notice is hereby given of the filing of an application with a petition
under 37 CFR 1.47 requesting acceptance of the application without the
signature of all the inventors. The petition has been granted. A notice has
been sent to the last known address of the non-signing inventor. The
inventor whose signature is missing (Mo-Han Fong) may join in the
application by promptly filing an appropriate oath or declaration complying
with 37 CFR 1.63. The international application number is PCT/CA2008/000203
and was filed 01 February 2008 in the names of Wen Tong, Jianglei Ma,
Mo-Han Fong, Peiying Zhu and Aaron Callard for the invention entitled
SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR APTIAL MULTIPLEXING-BASED MULTIPLE ANTENNA
BROADCAST/MULTICAST TRANSMISSION. The national stage number is 12/865,627
and has a 35 U.S.C. 371(c) date of 24 May 2011.

Notice of Suspension
Arlene J. Powers, a registered patent attorney (Registration Number
35,985). Ms. Powers has been suspended for twenty-four (24) months by the
United States Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO" or "Office") for
violating 37 CFR §§ 10.23(b)(3), (b)(4), (b)(5) and (b)(6), via 37 CFR §
10.23(c)(2)(ii), and 37 CFR § 10.85(a)(5), by knowingly giving false or
misleading information to the Office; and 37 CFR § 10.77(c) by neglecting a
matter entrusted to Ms. Powers. Under the terms of the settlement
agreement, Ms. Powers is eligible to request reinstatement after serving
two (2) months of her 24-month suspension, and, if reinstated, Ms. Powers
will be permitted to practice before the Office. Ms. Powers is also
required to serve a probationary period if her request for reinstatement is
granted. The aforementioned Disciplinary Rule violations are predicated
upon Ms. Powers having provided the Office with false or misleading
information in connection with petitions to revive an abandoned
application. In agreeing to the above-described sanction, the OED Director
took into account that (1) Ms. Powers has no prior disciplinary history
before the Office during the over eighteen and a half years she has been
registered as a patent practitioner, (2) the basis for the misconduct
appears to have been aberrational, (3) her employer imposed additional
sanctions, including placing Ms. Powers on probation, and (4) she fully
cooperated with the Office of Enrollment and Discipline during the
investigation and resolution of this matter. This action is the result of a
settlement agreement between Ms. Powers and the OED Director pursuant to
the provisions of 35 U.S.C. §§ 2(b)(2)(D) and 32, and 37 CFR §§ 11.20,
11.26, and 11.59. Disciplinary decisions involving practitioners are posted
for public reading at the Office of Enrollment and Discipline Reading Room
located at: http://des.uspto.gov/Foia/OEDReadingRoom.jsp.
June 13, 2011 MARIA C. CAMPO
Acting Deputy General Counsel for General Law
Office of General Counsel
United States Patent and Trademark Office
on behalf of
DAVID M. KAPPOS
Under Secretary of Commerce for
Intellectual Property and Director of the
United States Patent and Trademark Office

Patent Prosecution Highway Pilot Program between the United States Patent and Trademark Office and the Swedish Patent and Registration Office based on Patent Cooperation Treaty Work Products

Patent Prosecution Highway Pilot Program between
the United States Patent and Trademark Office and
the Swedish Patent and Registration Office
based on Patent Cooperation Treaty Work Products

I. Background

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and
the Swedish Patent and Registration office (PRV) have agreed to commence a
Patent Prosecution Highway pilot program based on Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) work
products (PCT-PPH) effective on June 1, 2011. See 35 U.S.C. 351, et
seq.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has
implemented Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) pilot programs with various
Intellectual Property Offices. Under the PPH pilot program, an applicant
receiving a determination from an Office of First Filing (OFF) that at least
one claim in an application filed in the OFF is allowable/patentable may
request that a corresponding application filed in the USPTO be accorded special
status and be advanced out of turn for examination. The PPH pilot program is
limited to the utilization of search and examination results of national
applications between cross filings under the Paris Convention.

In order to expand the potential of the PPH pilot program,
the USPTO recently implemented a new PPH pilot program with our Trilateral
partners (the European Patent Office (EPO) and the Japan Patent Office (JPO)),
the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO), the Austrian Patent Office
(APO), the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office (SPTO), the Federal Service on
Intellectual Property, Patents & Trademarks of Russia (Rospatent), IP
Australia (IPAU), and the National Board of Patents and Registration of Finland
(NBPR) based on PCT work products (PCT-PPH pilot program). The USPTO had
discussions with the Swedish Patent and Registration Office (PRV) to launch a
PCT-PPH pilot program similar to the PCT-PPH pilot programs between the USPTO
and our partnering Offices identified above. The USPTO and PRV agreed that
consistency between PCT-PPH pilot programs should be maintained to the extent
possible, to avoid creating burdens on applicants and offices, and to ensure
maximum work-sharing potential.

II. PCT-PPH Pilot Program

The PCT-PPH pilot program was established to enable an
applicant, who has received

(1) a Written Opinion from an International Searching
Authority (WO/ISA) (ISA must be the PRV or the USPTO), or

(2) a Written Opinion from an International Preliminary
Examining Authority (WO/IPEA) (IPEA must be the PRV or the USPTO), or

(3) an International Preliminary Examination Report (IPER) from
an International Preliminary Examining Authority (IPEA must be the PRV or the
USPTO), that indicates at least one claim in the PCT application has novelty,
inventive step and industrial applicability, to file a request to participate
in the PCT-PPH pilot program in a corresponding U.S. application and petition
to make the U.S. application special under the PCT-PPH pilot program. Note
that the procedures for a petition to make special under the accelerated
examination program set forth in MPEP 708.02(a) do NOT apply to a
petition to make special under the PCT-PPH pilot program. The procedures and
requirements for filing a request in the USPTO for participation in the PCT-PPH
pilot program are set forth below.

A. Trial Period for the PCT-PPH Pilot Program

USPTO and PRV agreed to commence the PCT-PPH pilot program on
June 1, 2011, for a period of two years ending on May 31, 2013. The
trial period may be extended if necessary until the USPTO and the PRV receive a
sufficient number of PCT-PPH requests to adequately assess the feasibility of
the PCT-PPH pilot program. The USPTO and the PRV may also terminate the
PCT-PPH pilot program early if the volume of participation exceeds a manageable
level, or for any other reasons. Notice will be published if the PCT-PPH pilot
program will be terminated before the May 31, 2013 date.

B. Requirements for Requesting Participation in the
PCT-PPH Pilot Program in the USPTO

In order to be eligible to participate in the PCT-PPH pilot
program, the following conditions must be met:

(1) The relationship between the corresponding U.S.
application for which participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program is requested
and the PCT application satisfies one of the following requirements (note that
RO/-- as used in the diagrams below refers to an international application
filed under the PCT in any competent receiving office):

(a) The U.S. application is a national stage entry of the corresponding
PCT application. See diagrams (A), (A’) and (A”) below.

(b) The U.S. application is a national application which forms the basis
for the priority claim in the corresponding PCT application. See diagram (B) below.

Provisional applications, plant applications, design applications,
reissue applications and applications
subject to a secrecy order (35 U.S.C. 181) are excluded and not subject to
participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program.

(c) The U.S. application is a
national stage entry of another PCT application (which can be filed in any
competent receiving office) which claims priority to the corresponding PCT
application. See diagram (C) below.

(d) The U.S. application is a
national application claiming foreign/domestic priority to the corresponding
PCT application. See diagram (D) below.

Design applications and
applications subject to a secrecy order (35 U.S.C. 181) are excluded and not
subject to participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program.

(e) The U.S. application is a
continuing application (continuation, divisional, or continuation-in-part) of
the U.S. application which satisfies one of the above (a) through (d)
scenarios. See diagrams (E1) and (E2) below.

Plant applications, design
applications and applications subject to a secrecy order (35 U.S.C. 181) are
excluded and not subject to participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program.

In diagram (E2), US2 application may be a non-provisional application claiming
benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) to a provisional application (US1).

(2) The latest work product in the international phase of
the PCT application corresponding to the U.S. application, namely, the WO/ISA,
WO/IPEA, or the IPER, indicates at least one claim in the PCT application has
novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability. In case any observation
is described in Box VIII of the WO/ISA, WO/IPEA, or IPER which forms the basis
for the PCT-PPH request, applicant must identify and explain why the claim(s) is/are
not subject to any observation described in Box VIII irrespective of whether an
amendment is submitted to correct the observation described in Box VIII.
The U.S. application will not be eligible to participate in the PCT-PPH pilot program if
applicant does not identify and explain why the claim(s) is/are not subject to
the observation described in Box VIII.

Note that the ISA and the IPEA which produced the WO/ISA,
WO/IPEA and the IPER are limited to the PRV or the USPTO.

Applicant may not file a request to participate in
the PCT-PPH pilot program on the basis of an International Search Report (ISR)
only.

(3) Claim Correspondence

(a) All of the claims in
each U.S. application for which a request for participation in the PCT-PPH
pilot program is made must sufficiently correspond to or be amended to
sufficiently correspond to one or more of those claims indicated as having
novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability and be free of any
observation described in Box VIII in the latest work product of the
corresponding PCT application.

(b) Claims are considered to "sufficiently
correspond" where, accounting for differences due to translations and claim
format requirements, the claims in the U.S. application are of the same or
similar scope as the claims indicated as having novelty, inventive step and
industrial applicability and free of any observation described in Box VIII in
the latest work product of the corresponding PCT application, or the claims in
the U.S. application are narrower in scope than the claims indicated as having
novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability and free of any
observation described in Box VIII in the latest work product of the
corresponding PCT application.

(c) In this regard, a claim that
is narrower in scope occurs when a claim indicated as having novelty, inventive
step and industrial applicability and free of any observation described in Box
VIII in the latest work product of the corresponding PCT application is amended
to be further limited by an additional feature that is supported in the written
description of the U.S. application. The claim(s) with the narrower scope must
be written in dependent form in the U.S. application for which participation in
the PCT-PPH pilot program is requested.

(4) Substantive examination of the U.S. application for which participation
in the PCT-PPH pilot program is requested has not begun.

(5) Applicant must file a request for participation in the
PCT-PPH pilot program and a request that the U.S. application be advanced out
of turn for examination by order of the Director to expedite the business of
the Office under 37 CFR 1.102(a). A sample request form (PTO/SB/20PCT-SE) will
be available from the USPTO Web site at http://www.uspto.gov.
Applicants are encouraged to use the USPTO request form. A petition fee under
37 CFR 1.17(h) is NOT required. See Notice Regarding the Elimination
of the Fee for Petitions To Make Special Filed Under the Patent Prosecution
Highway (PPH) Programs, 75 FR 29312 (May 25, 2010).

(6) Unless already filed in the U.S. application for which
participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program is requested, applicant must submit
a copy of the latest international work product, WO/ISA, WO/IPEA or IPER, which
indicated that the claim(s) has/have novelty, inventive step and industrial
applicability, along with an English translation thereof if the copy of the latest
international work product is not in the English language. A statement that
the English translation is accurate is not required. Where the required
documents have been previously filed in the U.S. application, applicant may
simply refer to these documents and indicate in the request for participation
in the PCT-PPH pilot program when these documents were previously filed in the
U.S. application. Where the U.S. application and the corresponding PCT application satisfy
the relationship noted in B.(1)(a) above, applicant need not submit a copy of
the latest international work product along with an English translation thereof
since a copy of these documents is already contained in the file wrapper of the
U.S. application.

(7) Unless already filed in the U.S. application for which
participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program is requested, applicant must submit
a copy of the claims from the corresponding PCT application which were indicated
as having novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability in the latest work
product of the PCT application, along with an English translation thereof and a
statement that the English translation is accurate if the claims are not in the
English language. Where the required documents have been previously filed in
the U.S. application, applicant may simply refer to these documents and
indicate in the request for participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program when
these documents were previously filed in the U.S. application. If the claims
in the U.S. application for which participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program is
requested are identical to the claims from the corresponding PCT application,
and are in the English language, applicant may just indicate such in the
PCT-PPH request and it will not be necessary for applicant to submit a copy of
the claims from the corresponding PCT application.

(8) Applicant is required to submit a claims correspondence
table in English. The claims correspondence table must indicate how all the
claims in the U.S. application sufficiently correspond to the claims indicated
as having novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability in the latest
international work product.

(9) Applicant must submit an information disclosure
statement (IDS) listing the documents cited in the international work products
(ISR, WO/ISA, WO/IPEA, IPER) of the PCT application corresponding to the U.S.
application for which participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program is requested
(unless such an IDS has already been filed in the U.S. application, in which
case applicant may simply refer to the previously filed IDS and indicate in the
request for participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program when the IDS was
previously filed in the U.S. application). Applicant must submit copies of all
the documents cited in the international work products of the PCT application
corresponding to the U.S. application (unless the copies have already been
filed in the U.S. application, in which case applicant may simply refer to the
previously filed copies of the documents and indicate in the request for
participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program when the copies were previously
filed in the U.S. application) except U.S. patents or U.S. patent application
publications.

(10) The request for participation in the PCT-PPH pilot
program and all the supporting documents must be submitted to the USPTO via
EFS-Web and indexed with the following document description: "Petition to make
special under PCT-Patent Pros Hwy." Information regarding EFS-Web is available
at http://www.uspto.gov/ebc/efs_help.html.
Any preliminary amendments and IDS submitted with the PCT-PPH documents must be
separately indexed as a preliminary amendment and IDS, respectively.

Where the request for participation in the PCT-PPH pilot
program and special status are granted, applicant will be notified and the
U.S. application will be advanced out of turn for examination. In those instances where
the request for participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program does not meet all
the requirements set forth above, applicant will be notified and the defects in
the request will be identified. Applicant will be given one opportunity
to perfect the request in a renewed request for participation (which must be
submitted via EFS-Web and indexed accordingly as noted above). Note that
action on the application by the examiner will NOT be suspended
(37 CFR 1.103) awaiting a reply by the applicant to perfect the request
in a renewed request for
participation. That is, if the application is picked up for examination by the
examiner after applicant has been notified of the defects in the request, any
renewed request will be dismissed. If the renewed request is perfected and
examination has not begun, the request and special status will be granted,
applicant will be notified and the U.S. application will be advanced out of
turn for examination. If not perfected, applicant will be notified and the
application will await action in its regular turn.

Request for participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program and
special status granted in a parent application will not carry over to a
continuing application. Applicant must fulfill all the conditions set forth
above in order for special status to be granted in the continuing application.

C. Special Examining Procedures

Once the request for participation in the PCT-PPH pilot
program and special status have been granted to the U.S. application, the U.S.
application will be taken up for examination by the U.S. examiner before all
other categories of applications except those clearly in condition for
allowance, those with set time limits, such as examiner’s answers, and those
that have been granted special status for "accelerated examination."

Any claims amended or added after the grant of the request
for participation in the PCT-PPH pilot program must "sufficiently correspond"
to the claims indicated as having novelty, inventive step and industrial
applicability in the latest work product of the corresponding PCT application.
See the definition of "sufficient correspondence" in II.B.(3) above. Applicant
is required to submit a claims correspondence table along with the amendment
(see II.B.(8) above). If the amended or newly added claims do not
sufficiently correspond to the claims indicated as having novelty, inventive
step and industrial applicability in the latest work product of the
corresponding PCT application, the amendment will not be entered and
will be treated as a non-responsive reply.

The PCT-PPH program does not absolve applicants of
all their duties under 37 CFR 1.56 and 37 CFR 11.18. By complying with
requirements II.B.(6) and (9) identified above, applicants would be considered
to have complied with their duties to bring to the attention of the USPTO any
material prior art cited in the corresponding PCT application (see MPEP §
2001.06(a)). Applicants still have a duty of candor and good faith, including
providing to the USPTO other information known to them to be material to
patentability.

Any inquiries concerning this notice may be directed to Magdalen Greenlief, Office
of the Associate Commissioner for Patent Examination Policy, at 571-272-8140 or
at magdalen.greenlief@uspto.gov.

Patent Prosecution Highway Pilot Program between the United States Patent and Trademark Office and the Israeli Patent Office

Patent Prosecution Highway Pilot Program between the
United States Patent and Trademark Office and the Israeli Patent Office

I. Background

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has
established a 2010-2015 Strategic Plan to transform the USPTO into a more
quality-focused, highly productive, responsive organization supporting a
market-driven intellectual property system. One of the specific action items
of the 2010-2015 Strategic Plan is to share search results with other
intellectual property offices. By relying on the search results obtained via
partnerships with other intellectual property offices, the USPTO can reduce
duplication of efforts and decrease workload.

From July 2006 to January 2008, the USPTO partnered with the
Japan Patent Office (JPO) to establish the first Patent Prosecution Highway
pilot program (PPH). The PPH leverages accelerated examination procedures
already available in both offices to allow applicants in both offices to obtain
corresponding patents faster and more efficiently. The PPH also permits each
office to benefit from the work previously done by the other office, in turn helping
to reduce workload and improve patent quality. The USPTO and the JPO began
full implementation of the PPH program on January 4, 2008.

The USPTO commenced PPH pilot programs with the Korean
Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) and the Canadian Intellectual Property
Office (CIPO) on January 28, 2008. The pilot program with KIPO ended
on January 28, 2009, and full implementation of the PPH program began on
January 29, 2009. The pilot program with CIPO ended on January 28, 2011, and
full implementation of the PPH program with CIPO began on January 29, 2011.

USPTO has also commenced separate PPH pilot programs with the
United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office (UK IPO), IP Australia (IPAU), the
European Patent Office (EPO), the Danish Patent and Trademark Office (DKPTO),
the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS), the German Patent and
Trade Mark Office (DPMA), the National Board of Patents and Registration of
Finland (NBPR), the Hungarian Patent Office (HPO), the Russian Patent Office
(Rospatent), the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office (SPTO), the Austrian
Patent Office (APO), and the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI) based
on the same or similar framework as the PPH between the USPTO and JPO.

Following on these partnerships, the USPTO and the Israeli
Patent Office have agreed to launch a PPH pilot program similar to the PPH
pilot programs noted above.

II. Patent Prosecution Highway Pilot Program

The PPH was established to enable an applicant whose claims
are determined to be allowable/patentable in the Office of First Filing (OFF)
to have the corresponding application filed in the Office of Second Filing
(OSF) advanced out of turn for examination while at the same time allowing the
OSF to exploit the search and examination results of the OFF.

Where the USPTO is the OFF and the U.S. application contains
claims that are determined to be allowable/patentable, the applicant may
request accelerated examination at the Israeli Patent Office for the
corresponding application filed with the Israeli Patent Office as the OSF. The
procedures and requirements for filing a request with the Israeli Patent Office
for participation in the PPH pilot program will be available on July 1, 2011, from
the Israeli Patent Office Web site at: http://www.justice.gov.il/MOJEng/RashamPatentim/.

Where the USPTO is the OSF and the corresponding application
filed with Israeli Patent Office as the OFF contains claims that are determined
to be allowable/patentable, the applicant may request participation in the PPH
pilot program in the USPTO and request that the U.S. application be advanced
out of turn for examination by order of the Director to expedite the business
of the Office under 37 CFR 1.102(a). Note that the procedures for a petition
to make special under the accelerated examination program set forth in MPEP § 708.02(a)
do NOT apply to a request for expedited examination by order of the
Director to expedite the business of the Office under 37 CFR 1.102(a). The procedures
and requirements for filing a request in the USPTO for
participation in the PPH pilot program are set forth below in Section B.

A. Trial Period for the PPH Pilot Program

The PPH pilot program will commence on July 1, 2011, for a
period of one year ending on June 30, 2012. The trial period may be extended
for up to an additional year if necessary to adequately assess the feasibility
of the PPH program. The USPTO and the Israeli Patent Office will evaluate the
results of the pilot program to determine whether and how the program should be
fully implemented after the trial period. The offices may also terminate the
PPH pilot program early if the volume of participation exceeds a manageable
level, or for any other reason. Notice will be published if the PPH pilot
program will be terminated before the June 30, 2012 date.

B. Requirements for Requesting Participation in the PPH
Pilot Program in the USPTO

In order to be eligible to participate in the PPH pilot
program, the following conditions must be met:

(1) The U.S. application is

(a) a Paris Convention application that either

(i) validly claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) and 37 CFR 1.55
to one or more applications filed with the Israeli Patent Office, or

(b) a national stage application under the PCT (an application which entered the
national stage in the U.S. from a PCT international application after compliance
with 35 U.S.C. § 371), in which the PCT application

(i) validly claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 365(b) to an application
filed with the Israeli Patent Office, or

(ii) validly claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 365(b) to a
PCT application that contains no priority claims, or

(iii) contains no priority claim,

or

(c) a so-called bypass application filed under 35 U.S.C. § 111(a) which validly claims
benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 120 to a PCT application, in which the PCT application

(i) validly claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 365(b) to an application
filed with the Israeli Patent Office, or

(ii) validly claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 365(b) to a
PCT application that contains no priority claims, or

(iii) contains no priority claim.

Examples of U.S. applications that fall under requirement (1) are:

(1)(a)(i):

- U.S. application with a single Paris Convention priority claim to an application filed in Israel (IL)

- U.S. application is a national stage of a PCT application that claims Paris Convention priority to an IL application

- PCT Route

(1)(b)(ii):

- U.S. application is a national stage of a PCT application that
claims Paris Convention priority to another PCT application

- Direct PCT and PCT Route

(1)(b)(iii):

- U.S. application is a national stage of a PCT application without priority claim

(1)(c)(i):

- U.S. application is a § 111(a) bypass of a PCT application that claims Paris Convention priority to an IL application

(1)(c)(ii):

- U.S. application is a § 111(a) bypass of a PCT application
that claims Paris Convention priority to another PCT application

(1)(c)(iii):

- U.S. application is a § 111(a) bypass of a PCT application that contains no priority claim

The IL application whose claims are determined to be
allowable/patentable does not have to be the application for which priority is
claimed in the USPTO application (the basic application). The IL application
can be an application explicitly derived from the basic application, e.g., a
divisional application of the basic application. Note that where the IL
application that contains the allowable/patentable claims is not the same
application for which priority is claimed in the U.S. application, the applicant
must identify the relationship between the IL application that contains the
allowable/patentable claims and the IL priority application claimed in the U.S.
application (e.g., IL application X that contains the allowable/patentable
claims is a divisional application of IL application Y, which is the priority
application claimed in the U.S. application).

Provisional applications, plant applications, design
applications, reissue applications, reexamination proceedings, and applications
subject to a secrecy order are excluded and not subject to participation in
the PPH.

(2) The IL application(s) must have at least one claim that was determined by the Israeli
Patent Office to be allowable/patentable. The applicant must submit a copy of
the allowable/patentable claims from the IL application(s) along with an
English translation thereof and a statement that the English translation is
accurate if the claims are not in the English language. If the Israeli Patent
Office office action does not explicitly state that a particular claim is
allowable, the applicant must include a statement in the request for
participation in the PPH pilot program or in the transmittal letter
accompanying the request for participation that no rejection has been made in the
Israeli Patent Office office action regarding that claim, and therefore, the claim
is deemed allowable by the Israeli Patent Office.

(3) All the claims in each U.S. application for which
a request for participation in the PPH pilot program is made must sufficiently
correspond to or be amended to sufficiently correspond to the allowable/patentable
claims in the IL application(s). Claims will be considered to sufficiently
correspond where, accounting for differences due to translations and claim
format requirements, the claims are of the same or similar scope. The applicant
is also required to submit a claims correspondence table in English. The
claims correspondence table must indicate how all the claims in the U.S. application
correspond to the allowable/patentable claims in the IL application(s).

(4) Examination of the U.S. application for which
participation in the PPH pilot program is requested has not begun.

(5) The applicant must file a request for participation in
the PPH pilot program and a request that the U.S. application be advanced out
of turn for examination by order of the Director to expedite the business of
the Office under 37 CFR 1.102(a). A sample request form (PTO/SB/20IL) will be
available from the USPTO Web site at http://www.uspto.gov
on July 1, 2011. Applicants are encouraged to use the USPTO request form. A
petition fee under 37 CFR 1.17(h) is NOT required. See Notice
Regarding the Elimination of the Fee for Petitions To Make Special Filed Under
the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Programs, 75 Fed. Reg. 29312 (May 25,
2010).

(6) The applicant must submit a copy of all the office
actions (which are relevant to patentability) from each of the IL
application(s) containing the allowable/patentable claims that are the basis
for the request, along with an English translation thereof and a statement that
the English translation is accurate if the office actions are not in the
English language. In addition, the applicant must submit copies of any office
actions (which are relevant to patentability) from the IL application(s) issued
after the grant of the request for participation in the PPH pilot program in
the USPTO (especially where the Israeli Patent Office might have reversed a
prior holding of allowability).

(7) The applicant must submit an information disclosure
statement (IDS) listing the documents cited by the Israeli Patent Office examiner
in the Israeli Patent Office office action (unless such an IDS has already been
filed in the U.S. application). The applicant must submit copies of all the
documents cited in the Israeli Patent Office office action (unless the copies
have already been filed in the U.S. application) except U.S. patents or U.S.
patent application publications.

The request for participation in the PPH pilot program and
all the supporting documents must be submitted to the USPTO via EFS-Web and
indexed with the following document description: "Petition to make special
under Patent Pros Hwy." Information regarding EFS-Web is available at http://www.uspto.gov/ebc/efs_help.html.
Any preliminary amendments and IDS submitted with the PPH documents must be
separately indexed as a preliminary amendment and IDS, respectively.

Where the request for participation in the PPH pilot program
and special status are granted, the applicant will be notified and the U.S. application
will be advanced out of turn for examination. In those instances where
the request for participation in the PPH pilot program does not meet all the
requirements set forth above, the applicant will be notified and the defects in
the request will be identified. The applicant will be given one
opportunity to perfect the request in a renewed request for participation
(which must be submitted via EFS-Web and indexed accordingly as noted above).
Note that action on the application by the examiner will NOT be
suspended (37 CFR 1.103) awaiting a reply by the applicant to perfect the
request in a renewed request for participation. That is, if the application is
picked up for examination by the examiner after the applicant has been notified
of the defects in the request, any renewed request will be dismissed. If the
renewed request is perfected and examination has not begun, the request and
special status will be granted, the applicant will be notified and the U.S. application
will be advanced out of turn for examination. If not perfected, the applicant
will be notified and the application will await action in its regular turn.

(8) Request for participation in the PPH pilot program and
special status granted in a parent application will not carry over to a
continuing application. The applicant must fulfill all the conditions set
forth above in order for special status to be granted in the continuing
application.

If any of the documents identified in items (2), (6) and (7)
above have already been filed in the U.S. application prior to the request for
participation in the PPH pilot program, it will not be necessary for the applicant
to resubmit these documents with the request for participation. The applicant
may simply refer to these documents and indicate in the request for
participation in the PPH pilot program when these documents were previously
filed in the U.S. application.

C. Special Examining Procedures

Once the request for participation in the PPH pilot program
and special status have been granted to the U.S. application, the U.S.
application will be taken up for examination by the U.S. examiner before all
other categories of applications except those clearly in condition for
allowance, those with set time limits, such as examiner’s answers, and those
that have been granted special status for "accelerated examination."

Any claims amended or added after the grant of the request
for participation in the PPH pilot program must sufficiently correspond to one
or more allowable/patentable claims in the IL application(s). The applicant is
required to submit a claims correspondence table along with the amendment (see
B.(3) above). If the amended or newly added claims do not sufficiently
correspond to the allowable/patentable claims in the IL application(s), the
amendment will not be entered and will be treated as a non-responsive
reply.

The PPH program does not absolve applicants of all
their duties under 37 CFR 1.56 and 37 CFR 11.18. By complying with
requirements B.(6) and (7) identified above, applicants would be considered to
have complied with their duties to bring to the attention of the USPTO any
material prior art cited in the corresponding foreign application(s) (see MPEP
§ 2001.06(a)). Applicants still have a duty of candor and good faith,
including providing to the USPTO other information known to them to be material
to patentability.

Any inquiries concerning this notice may be directed to Magdalen Greenlief, Office
of the Associate Commissioner for Patent Examination Policy, at 571-272-8140 or
at magdalen.greenlief@uspto.gov.

Errata
"All reference to Patent No. 7,952,432 to Hirotoshi Tsuchiya of
Fukuroi-shi, Japan for CLASS-D AMPLIFIER appearing in the Official Gazette
of May 31, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,952,611 to Philippe Kahn, et al of Aptos,
CA for METHOD AND APPARATUS TO PROVIDE IMPROVED IMAGE QUALITY IN A CAMERA
appearing in the Official Gazette of May 31, 2011 should be deleted since
no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,953,384 to Kumiko Takikawa, et al of
Tama, Japan for WIRELESS COMMUNICATION appearing in the Official Gazette of
May 31, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. D,639,018 to Heather T. Schindler of New
York, NY for GARMENT appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011
should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,954,227 to Dan Carey, et al of
Kernersville, NC for METHOD OF MANUFACTURING A MODULE appearing in the
Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was
granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,954,381 to Taku Ichiryu of Akashi-Shi,
Japan for VIBRO-METER MOUNTING MECHANISM appearing in the Official Gazette
of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,954,597 to Takahiro Niwa, et al of Tokyo,
Japan for SOUND-PROOF COVER appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07,
2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,954,638 to Brian W. Brollier, et al of
Cincinnati, OH for CHILD-RESISTANT PACKAGE WITH A LATCH AND RETAINING
FEATURE appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be
deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,954,695 to Benjamin W. Quaintance, et al
of Germantown, TN for MULTI-SIDED TRAY BLISS CONTAINER appearing in the
Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was
granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,955,019 to Kazuyoshi Sasae of Toride-Shi,
Japan for RESIN COMPONENT AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS appearing in the
Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was
granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,955,799 to Susan Lindquist, et al of
Chestnut Hill, MA for YEAST SCREENS FOR TREATMENT OF HUMAN DISEASE
appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since
no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,955,894 to Katsuhiro Tomoda, et al of
Kanagawa, Japan for MOUNTING METHOD, MOUNTED STRUCTURE, MANUFACTURING
METHOD FOR ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT, ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT, MANUFACTURING METHOD
FOR LIGHT-EMITTING DIODE DISPLAY, AND LIGHT-EMITTING DIODE DISPLAY
appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since
no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,955,934 to Chien Hung Liu of Hsinchu,
Taiwan of NITRIDE READ ONLY MEMORY DEVICE WITH BURIED DIFFUSION SPACERS AND
METHOD FOR MAKING THE SAME appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07,
2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,956,159 to Huw M. Nash of Concord, MA for

July 5, 2011

US PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE

1368 OG 50

TRIAZOLE MACROCYCLE SYSTEMS appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07,
2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,956,186 to Wanglin Yu, et al of Midland,
MI for AROMATIC MONOMER-AND CONJUGATED POLYMER-METAL COMPLEXES appearing in
the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was
granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,956,291 to Shinobu Kato of Gifu, Japan
for MULTILAYER PRINTED WIRING BOARD appearing in the Official Gazette of
June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,956,555 to Yoichi Tamegai, et al of
Ukyo-Ku, Japan for DC/DC CONVERTER appearing in the Official Gazette of
June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,956,599 to Rachid M. Alameh, et al of
Crystal Lake, IL for PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE HAVING SELF-CALIBRATING
PROXIMITY SENSORS appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should
be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,956,859 to Hisae Shimizu, et al of Tokyo,
Japan for DRIVE CIRCUIT AND DRIVE METHOD OF LIGHT EMITTING DISPLAY
APPARATUS appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be
deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,956,866 to Martin G. Selbrede, et al of
The Woodlands, TX for MECHANISM TO MITIGATE COLOR BREAKUP ARTIFACTS IN
FIELD SEQUENTIAL COLOR DISPLAY SYSTEMS appearing in the Official Gazette of
June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,956,986 to Vadim Yevgenyevich Banine, et
al of Helmond, Netherlands for PELLICLE, LITHOGRAPHIC APPARATUS AND DEVICE
MANUFACTURING METHOD appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011
should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,957,013 to Hiroyuki Motoyama of
Matsumoto-Shi, Japan for PRINTER, PRINTER CONTROL METHOD, AND PRINTER
CONTROL PROGRAM appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should
be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,957,194 to Jin-Ki Kim, et al of Kanata,
Canada for NON-VOLATILE SEMICONDUCTOR MEMORY HAVING MULTIPLE EXTERNAL
POWER SUPPLIES appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be
deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,957,255 to Seigo Nakao, et al of
Gifu-Shi, Japan for METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TRANSMITTING SIGNALS, AND
METHOD AND APPARTUS FOR RECEIVING THE SIGNALS appearing in the Official
Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,957,261 to Rajiv Laroia, et al of Far
Hills, NJ for SIGNALING METHOD IN AN OFDM MULTIPLE ACCESS SYSTEM appearing
in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent
was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,957,262 to Rajiv Laroia, et al of Far
Hills, NJ for SIGNALING METHOD IN AN OFDM MULTIPLE ACCESS SYSTEM appearing
in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent
was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,957,654 to Takeshi Hoshida of Kawasaki,
Japan for COHERENT OPTICAL RECEIVER appearing in the Official Gazette of
June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,957,668 to Yasushi Okabe of Nagoya-Shi,

July 5, 2011

US PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE

1368 OG 51

Japan for TANDEM PHOTOSENSITIVE-MEMBER UNIT HAVING GRIP PART appearing in
the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was
granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,958,203 to Martin Weel of Modjeska, CA
for SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR SHARING PLAYLISTS appearing in the Official
Gazette of June 07, 2011 should be deleted since no patent was granted."
"All reference to Patent No. 7,958,235 to Hiroshi Nishikawa, et al of
Minato-Ku, Japan for POINT-BASED CUSTOMER TRACKING AND MAINTENANCE
INCENTIVE SYSTEM appearing in the Official Gazette of June 07, 2011 should
be deleted since no patent was granted."

Summary of Final Decisions Issued by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board

SUMMARY OF FINAL DECISIONS ISSUED BY THE TRADEMARK TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARDMay 31 – June 3, 2011

Date Issued

Type of Case(1)

Proceeding or Appn. No.

Party or Parties

Issue

TTAB Decision

Opposer's or Petitioner's Mark and Goods or Services

Applicant's or Respondent's Mark and Goods or Services

Mark and Goods Cited by Examining Attorney

Issued as Precedent of TTAB

5-31

EX

77723547

Chengdu AOBI Information Technology Co., Ltd.

1 & 45 (specimen)

Refusal Affirmed

"IOBIT" (stylized) [Computer programming; Computer software design; Conversion of data or documents from physical to electronic media; Data conversion of computer programs and data, not physical conversion; Duplication of computer programs; Hosting of web sites; Installation of computer software; Maintenance of computer software; Research and development for new products for others; Research and development of computer software; Updating and maintenance of computer software]

"GAMEBOY" [game equipment, namely, electronic game equipment for playing video games and video game programs; toys, namely, electronic memory device toys] and numerous other marks including "BOY," for example, "LIGHT BOY" for similar goods

"FLASHBOY" [Class 9: plug and play interactive video games of virtual reality comprised of computer hardware and software] [Class 28: hand-held units for playing video games and electronic games, namely, stand alone video game machines]

"RADIO-INFO.COM" [Class 38: Providing online news and information in the field of radio broadcasting; providing on-line electronic bulletin boards for transmission of messages among computer users concerning radio entertainment, radio personalities and the radio industry] [Class 41: providing online news and information in the field of radio entertainment personalities and radio entertainment programming]

Mailing and Hand Carry Addresses for Mail to the United States Patent and Trademark Office

MAILING AND HAND CARRY ADDRESSES FOR
MAIL TO THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
MAIL TO BE DIRECTED TO THE COMMISSIONER FOR PATENTS
For most correspondence (e.g., new patent applications) no mail stop
is required because the processing of the correspondence is routine.
If NO mail stop is included on the list below, no mail stop is required
for the correspondence. See the listing under "Mail to be Directed to the
Director of the Patent And Trademark Office" for additional mail stops
for patent-related correspondence. Only the specified type of document
should be placed in an envelope addressed to one of these special mail
stops. If any documents other than the specified type identified for each
special mail stop are addressed to that mail stop, they will be
significantly delayed in reaching the appropriate area for which they are
intended. The mail stop should generally appear as the first line in
the address.
Most correspondence may be submitted electronically. See the USPTO's
Electronic Filing System (EFS-Web) internet page
http://www.uspto.gov/patents/process/file/efs/index.jsp for additional
information.
Please address mail to be delivered by the United States Postal Service
(USPS) as follows:
Mail Stop _____
Commissioner for Patents
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
If no Mail Stop is indicated below, the line beginning Mail Stop should
be omitted from the address.
Except correspondence for Maintenance Fee payments, Deposit Account
Replenishments (see 37 CFR 1.25(c)(4)), and Licensing and Review (see 37 CFR
5.1(c) and 5.2(c)), please address patent-related correspondence to be
delivered by other delivery services (Federal Express (Fed Ex), UPS, DHL,
Laser, Action, Purolator, etc.) as follows:
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Customer Service Window, Mail Stop _____
Randolph Building
401 Dulany Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
Mail Stop
Designations Explanation
Mail Stop 12 Contributions to the Examiner Education Program.
Mail Stop 313(c) Petitions under 37 CFR 1.313(c) to withdraw a
patent application from issue after payment of
the issue fee and any papers associated with the
petition, including papers necessary for a
continuing application or a request for
continued examination (RCE).
Mail Stop AF Amendments and other responses after final
rejection (e.g., a notice of appeal (and any
request for pre-appeal brief conference)),
other than an appeal brief.
Mail Stop Amendment Information disclosure statements, drawings, and
replies to Office actions in patent applications
with or without an amendment to the application or
a terminal disclaimer. (Use Mail Stop AF for
replies after final rejection.)
Mail Stop Appeal For appeal briefs or other briefs under
Brief-Patents part 41 of title 37 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (e.g., former 37 CFR 1.192).
Mail Stop Public comments regarding patent-related
Comments-Patent regulations and procedures.
Mail Stop Conversion Requests under 37 CFR 1.53(c)(2) to convert a
nonprovisional application to a provisional
application and requests under 37 CFR 1.53(c)(3)
to convert a provisional application to a
nonprovisional application.
Mail Stop EBC Mail for the Electronic Business Center including:
Certificate Action Forms, Request for Customer
Number, and Requests for Customer Number Data
Change (USPTO Forms PTO-2042, PTO/SB/124A and 125A,
respectively) and Customer Number Upload
Spreadsheets and Cover Letters.
Mail Stop Expedited Only to be used for the initial filing of
Design design applications accompanied by a
request for expedited examination under
37 CFR 1.155.
Mail Stop Express Requests for abandonment of a patent
Abandonment application pursuant to 37 CFR 1.138,
including any petitions under 37 CFR
1.138(c) to expressly abandon an
application to avoid publication of the
application.
Mail Stop Applications under 35 U.S.C. 156 for patent term
Hatch-Waxman PTE extension based on regulatory review of a product
subject to pre-market review by a regulating
agency. This mail stop is also to be used for
additional correspondence regarding the
application for patent term extension under
35 U.S.C. 156. It is preferred that such initial
requests be hand-carried to:
Office of Patent Legal Administration
Room MDW 7D55
600 Dulany Street (Madison Building)
Alexandria, VA 22314
Mail Stop ILS Correspondence relating to international patent
classification, exchanges and standards.
Mail Stop Issue Fee All communications following the receipt of a
PTOL-85, "Notice of Allowance and Fee(s)
Due," and prior to the issuance of a patent
should be addressed to Mail Stop Issue Fee,
unless advised to the contrary.
Assignments are the exception. Assignments
(with cover sheets) should be faxed to
571-273-0140, electronically submitted
(http://epas.uspto.gov), or submitted in a
separate envelope and sent to Mail Stop
Assignment Recordation Services,
Director - U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
as shown below.
Mail Stop L&R All documents pertaining to applications subject
to secrecy order pursuant to 35 U.S.C. 181, or
national-security classified and required to be
processed accordingly. Such papers, petitions for
foreign filing license pursuant to 37 CFR 5.12(b)
for which expedited handling is requested, and
petitions for retroactive license under 37 CFR
5.25 may also be hand carried to Licensing and
Review:
Technology Center 3600, Office of the Director
Room 4B41
501 Dulany Street (Knox Building)
Alexandria, VA 22314
Mail Stop Missing Requests for a corrected filing receipt and
Parts replies to OPAP notices such as the Notice
of Omitted Items, Notice to File Corrected
Application Papers, Notice of Incomplete
Application, Notice to Comply with Nucleotide
Sequence Requirements, and Notice to File Missing
Parts of Application, and associated papers and
fees.
Mail Stop MPEP Submissions concerning the Manual of Patent
Examining Procedure.
Mail Stop Patent Ext. Applications for patent term extension or
adjustment under 35 U.S.C. 154 and any
communications relating thereto. This mail stop
is limited to petitions for patent term extension
under 35 U.S.C. 154 for applications filed
between June 8, 1995 and May 29, 2000, and patent
term adjustment (PTA) under 35 U.S.C. 154 for
applications filed on or after May 29, 2000.
For applications for patent term extension under
35 U.S.C. 156, use Mail Stop Hatch-Waxman PTE.
For applications for patent term extension or
adjustment under 35 U.S.C. 154 that are mailed
together with the payment of the issue fee, use
Mail Stop Issue Fee.
Mail Stop Patent Submission of comments regarding search templates.
Search Template
Comments
Mail Stop PCT Mail related to international applications filed
under the Patent Cooperation Treaty in the
international phase and in the national phase
under 35 U.S.C. 371 prior to mailing of a
Notification of Acceptance of Application Under
35 U.S.C. 371 and 37 CFR 1.495 (Form
PCT/DO/EO/903).
Mail Stop Petition Petitions to be decided by the Office of Petitions,
including petitions to revive and petitions to
accept late payment of issue fees or maintenance
fees.
Mail Stop PGPUB Correspondence regarding publication of patent
applications not otherwise provided, including:
requests for early publication made after filing,
rescission of a non-publication request, corrected
patent application publication, and refund of
publication fee.
Mail Stop Post In patented files: requests for changes of
Issue correspondence address, powers of attorney,
revocations of powers of attorney, withdrawal as
attorney or agent and submissions under 37
CFR 1.501. Designation of, or changes to, a fee
address should be addressed to Mail Stop M
Correspondence. Requests for Certificate of
Correction need no special mail stop, but
should be mailed to the attention of Certificate
of Correction Branch.
Mail Stop RCE Requests for continued examination under
37 CFR 1.114.
Mail Stop Correspondence pertaining to the reconstruction
Reconstruction of lost patent files.
Mail Stop Ex Parte Original requests for Ex Parte Reexamination
Reexam and all subsequent corresponcence other
than correspondence to the Office of the Solicitor
(see 37 CFR 1.1(a)(3) and 1.302(c)).
Mail Stop Inter Original requests for Inter Partes Reexamination
Partes Reexam and all subsequent correspondence other than
correspondence to the Office of the Solicitor
(see 37 CFR 1.1(a)(3) and 1.302(c)).
Mail Stop Reissue All new and continuing reissue application filings.
Mail Stop Sequence Submission of the computer readable form (CRF) for
applications with sequence listings, when the CRF
is not being filed with the patent application.
Information for addressing trademark-related correspondence may also be found
on the USPTO's web site at http://www.uspto.gov/patents/mail.jsp.
MAIL TO BE DIRECTED TO THE COMMISSIONER FOR TRADEMARKS
Please address trademark-related correspondence to be delivered by the
United States Postal Service (USPS), except documents sent to the Assignment
Services Division for recordation, requests for copies of trademark
documents, and documents directed to the Madrid Processing Unit, as follows:
Commissioner for Trademarks
P.O. Box 1451
Alexandria, VA 22313-1451
Mail to be delivered by the USPS to the Office's Madrid Processing Unit,
must be mailed to:
Madrid Processing Unit
600 Dulany Street
MDE-7B87
Alexandria, VA 22314-5796
Mail to be delivered by the USPS to the Office's Deputy Commissioner for
Trademark Policy regarding Letters of Protest must be mailed to:
Letter of Protest
ATTN: Deputy Commissioner for Trademark Policy
600 Dulany Street
Alexandria, VA 22314-5796
Mail to be delivered by the USPS to the Director regarding the Fastener
Quality Act (FQA) must be mailed to:
Director, USPTO
ATTN: FQA
600 Dulany Street, MDE-10A71
Alexandria, VA 22314-5793
Mail to be delivered by the USPS to the Commissioner regarding the
recordal of a Native American Tribal Insignia (NATI) must be mailed to:
Native American Tribal Insignia
ATTN: Commissioner for Trademarks
600 Dulany Street
MDE-10A71
Alexandria, VA 22314-5793
Do NOT send any of the following via USPS certified mail or with a
"signature required" option: submissions to the Madrid Processing Unit,
Letters of Protest, applications for recordal of insignia under the
Fastener Quality Act, notifications of Native American Tribal Insignia.
Trademark-related mail to be delivered by hand or other private courier
or delivery service (e.g., UPS, Federal Express) to the Trademark Operation,
the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, or the Office's Madrid Processing Unit,
must be delivered to:
Trademark Assistance Center
Madison East, Concourse Level Room C 55
600 Dulany Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
Information for addressing trademark-related correspondence may also be found
on the USPTO's web site at http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/mail.jsp.
MAIL TO BE DIRECTED TO THE DIRECTOR OF THE UNITED STATES
PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
Please address mail to be directed to a mail stop identified below to
be delivered by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as follows (unless
otherwise instructed):
Mail Stop _____
Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
Mail Stop
Designations Explanation
Mail Stop 3 Mail for the Office of Personnel from NFC.
Mail Stop 6 Mail for the Office of Procurement.
Mail Stop 8 All papers for the Office of the Solicitor.
Mail Stop 11 Mail for the Electronic Ordering Service (EOS).
Mail Stop 13 Mail for the Employee and Labor Relations Division.
Mail Stop 16 Mail related to refund requests, other than
requests for refund of a patent application
publication fee. Such requests should be directed
to Mail Stop PGPub.
Mail Stop 17 Invoices directed to the Office of Finance.
Mail Stop 24 Mail for the Inventor's Assistance Program,
including complaints about Invention Promoters.
Mail Stop 171 Vacancy Announcement Applications.
Mail Stop Assignment All assignment documents, security interests,
Recordation Services and other documents to be recorded in the
Assignment records. Note that documents with
cover sheets that are faxed to 571-273-0140 or
submitted electronically (http://epas.uspto.gov)
are processed much more quickly than those
submitted by mail.
Mail Stop Document All requests for certified or uncertified
Services copies of patent or trademark documents.
Mail Stop EEO Mail for the Office of Civil Rights.
Mail Stop External Mail for the Office of External Affairs.
Affairs
Mail Stop Interference Communications relating to interferences and
applications and patents involved in interference.
Mail Stop M Mail to designate or change a fee
Correspondence address, or other correspondence related to
maintenance fees, except payments of
maintenance fees in patents. See below for
the address for maintenance fee payments.
Mail Stop OED Mail for the Office of Enrollment and Discipline.
Maintenance Fee Payments
Unless submitted electronically over the Internet at www.uspto.gov, or by
facsimile, payments of maintenance fees in patents should be mailed through
the United States Postal Service.
Mailing address if paying with a check or money order:
United States Patent and Trademark Office
P.O. Box 979070
St. Louis, MO 63197-9000
Mailing address if paying by credit card or deposit account (or by hand-
delivery):
Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Attn.: Maintenance Fees
2051 Jamieson Avenue, Suite 300
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
Information about the Maintenance Fee Branch may also be found on the
USPTO's web site at http://www.uspto.gov/about/offices/cfo/finance/receipts_
division.jsp.
Deposit Account Replenishments
To send payment to replenish deposit accounts, send the payments through
the United States Postal Service to:
United States Patent and Trademark Office
P.O. Box 979065
St. Louis, MO 63197-9000
Or
Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Attn.: Deposit Accounts
2051 Jamieson Avenue, Suite 300
Alexandria, VA 22314
Alternatively, deposit account replenishments (Attn: Deposit Accounts)
using hand-delivery and delivery by private courier (e.g., FedEx, UPS, etc.)
may be delivered to:
Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Attn.: Deposit Accounts
2051 Jamieson Avenue, Suite 300
Alexandria, VA 22314
Information abount deposit account replenishments may also be found on
the USPTO's web site at
http://www.uspto.gov/about/offices/cfo/finance/Deposit_Account_
Replenishments.jsp

ELECTRONIC OFFICIAL GAZETTE
of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
PATENTS
(eOG:P)

The Electronic Official Gazette of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office - Patents (eOG:P) provides the information in electronic format on CD-ROM.
The eOG:P is published every Tuesday and includes bibliographic information, a representative claim, and a drawing (if applicable) of each patent
issued that week. Patents are accessible by type of patent (utility, plant, etc.), classification (class or class/subclass), patentee name, and
geographical location. Links enable users to "jump" to a specific patent from these various indexes. The eOG:P is sold as an annual subscription
or as single copies.

Subscriptions are $430.00 per year, with single copies available for $20.00. For single copy purchases, please specify date and volume/issue number. Order
forms are available in MS Word® or Adobe® Acrobat® format.